Flu season this year has been relatively mild, but now cases are going up just as COVID-19 cases are dropping to new lows.
For more, stream KCBS Radio now.
There are two major theories as to why the flu has been so mild since the pandemic began.
Some suggest that all the protective measures taken to prevent the spread of COVID-19 are also doing a pretty good job of stopping the flu as well, while others have suggested that COVID-19 is simply outcompeting the flu virus.
Either way, both of these theories suggest that as COVID-19 cases go down, the flu could surge back – with a vengeance.
"We've definitely started seeing more influenza in the hospital in the clinics, we've been seeing more colds," said UCSF infectious disease expert Dr. Peter Chin-Hong.
Chin-Hong is in the camp that believes flu cases have gone down in the last two years due to all the precautions taken against COVID-19, which are pretty effective at blocking the spread of other pathogens as well.
But now as masking mandates are dropped around the country and COVID-19 cases decline, the uptick in flu cases is unsurprising.
"All of this is consistent with moving around, letting our guards down, naturally speaking, going back to normal so to speak," he said.
And with so much still uncertain, the worst of this year's flu season could be just around the corner.
LISTEN to KCBS Radio
FAVORITE KCBS Radio
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
Related
